The Second Generation
by saruneko
Summary: Albus Potter, Rose Weasley and Scoripus Malfoy meet on the train one day. They are about to start their first year. What could happen?
1. Chapter One: The Sorting

**THE SORTING**

_**N.B. **__Just to say, some characters have been taken, and are under the trademark of J. K. Rowling. However, the storyline is completely my own, set in her world of Harry Potter that we all love :) Thank you J. K. Rowling for Harry Potter! Have fun reading._

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Scorpius walked down the train, dragging his trunk with him and surreptitiously glanced around for an empty compartment. His pale blonde hair, made even paler and brighter by his dark robes was reflected in the windows, bobbing along the corridor. He was alone. As he passed by full carriage after full carriage, he finally arrived at the last one and he breathed a sigh of relief to see that it wasn't full. He released his trunk and slid open the door.

"Sorry, can I sit-" his voice trailed away as he recognized the two figures seated there next to the window. One of them, frizzy red hair, brown eyed and looking at him over the rim of a book. The other, dark haired, with shocking green eyes, looked at him with curiously while he twirled his wand.

"I'm sorry," Scorpius started, but was interrupted.

"No, go ahead, we have room," the boy offered. He gestured at the space. "We could take a few more people." Scorpius stared and then realized what the boy had just said. He nodded and muttered a "thanks", then dragged his trunk in and stuffed it into the luggage compartment. Scorpius then seated himself facing the boy, watching the flickering shadows of scenery on the floor. The other two looked at each other; the girl gesturing wildly with her eyebrows. The boy cleared his throat.

"Err, so, you're new as well right?" he asked apprehensively. Scorpius looked up and nodded, his pale grey eyes meeting the green ones.

"I'm Scorpius. You're Albus Potter," Scorpius said in reply. Albus stopped twirling his wand and answered.

"Yes. This is Rose Weasley," he said, indicating the red haired girl with the book. She closed it with her finger marking the pages, and smiled at Scorpius.

"Do you have any brothers or sisters at Hogwarts?" she asked kindly. Scorpius shook his head, and noticed instead, the evening sun enhancing the redness of her hair. He shook his head again and looked back at her. They were trying to make conversation. Okay. He could do this.

"So, which house are you both going to be in?" he blurted out quickly to fill the silence. _Oops. Bad question,_ he thought to himself. He resisted the urge to whack himself on the back of the head. _Keep calm, keep calm,_ he recited.

"Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!" Albus said grinning broadly. He winked at Rose. "But it's not for sure or anything," he added forlornly. "Not like Rose. She'll definitely be in Gryffindor." She smiled in reply.

"Why not? Weren't both your parents there too?" Scorpius asked curiously. Albus nodded.

"But, my dad could speak Parseltongue, so I thought maybe… I might be in Slytherin. But he said it didn't matter, so I don't mind," he explained. He smiled. "What about you?"

"Oh, it'll be Slytherin for me for sure," Scorpius replied. He looked up at the ceiling. "My whole family was in it." Rose kicked Albus in the shins when she saw his expression. He closed his mouth.

"It'll be cool, we can see each other on the Quidditch pitch!" he said encouragingly. Scorpius looked up in surprise.

"You play too? What position?"

"Seeker! Just like my dad!"

"Really? Mine too!"

Rose smiled behind the pages of _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_. Their expressions were animated; they were both smiling widely, playfully discussing their favourite teams and why the other's sucked, and the newest brooms out. The lunch trolley trundled by, with the usual pink faced, happily smiling witch.

"Anything off the trolley dears?" she asked, smiling benevolently. As she trundled off, the boys continued to talk while stuffing in a variety of sweets including Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Pumpkin Pasties and Licorice Wands. Rose frowned and made a face as they didn't seem to notice what beans they were putting into their mouths as they talked. She sucked contentedly on her Licorice Wand. The two of them hardly noticed as the sunlight slowly faded, the scenery changed from lush green hills to dark mountains and icy lakes and the lamps brightened slowly.

The train slowed down gradually and rolled to a halt outside Hogsmeade Station. Excited students filed out of compartments, all chattering loudly, holding cages and trunks and wands. Owls hooted loudly to one another through the last of the steam from the train, and a loud voice boomed over the hubbub.

"Firs'-years! Firs'-years over here!" Hagrid's huge form was gradually visible through the fog, and the three of them huddled over quickly to where he was standing with a glowing orange lantern.

"All right there, Albus? Any more firs'-years? Follow me!" Hagrid's glowing lantern bobbed away down a steep, narrow path, which winded through what seemed to be a forest and finally opened up to reveal a huge, black lake and an enormous mountain, on which perched a massive castle with many towers and turrets. Twinkling lights shone out of windows, illuminating the castle against the dark, starry sky.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid instructed, pointing to the same fleet of boats that Harry and his friends had used so many years ago. The first years scrambled to get in quickly; Albus, Rose and Scorpius wedged themselves into a boat, and they were shortly joined by another girl. She had short messy black hair and big dark violet eyes. She smiled slightly at the rest of them.

"Everyone in? Okay, FORWARD!" shouted Hagrid in his own little boat, and the little fleet glided across the deep lake. It was quiet; the first years stared up at the castle which towered over them. Cliffs were visible overhead, and Hagrid yelled to duck as they approached them. They sailed through, bending their heads and through a curtain of ivy. The little boats then docked themselves at an underground harbour, where the group of them scrambled out, slipping slightly on the wet rocks. Hagrid let them up a passageway, illuminated by his lantern and onto a vast lawn right by the castle. Scorpius thought he saw a white blob in the midst of the darkness, by the lake they had just sailed on, but his thoughts were interrupted by Hagrid.

"Everyone here?" he asked. Then he knocked three times on the castle door. It swung open to reveal a tall, silver haired wizard in deep blue robes. He was smiling widely at the sight of the first years and beckoned for them to come in.

"The firs'-years, Professor Neuro," said Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid! Come in young ones," he said, pulling the doors open wider. The first years filed into the Entrance Hall. Albus, Rose, Scorpius and the girl with violet eyes stared at the grandeur. Nothing had changed. Their parents had told them exactly how it would be, and it was all that they had promised. Albus caught Scorpius' eye, and they grinned at each other. Professor Neuro led them across the hall, past a door from which the buzzing of hundred of voices could be heard, into an empty chamber across the hall.

"Wait here, I'll be back for you," he assured them, still smiling, and disappeared, closing the door behind him. The lot of them started chattering excitedly at once; some faces ablaze with excitement, others with apprehension.

"This is awesome!" Albus exclaimed and the rest of them nodded in agreement.

"It's exactly like they told us it would be!" Rose exclaimed. She smiled happily.

"I hope we have dinner soon," Scorpius said and the girl with the violet eyes laughed.

"But we'll have to do the Sorting first don't we? Isn't that the most important part?" she said, and the other three stiffened, remembering.

"I forgot about that!" Albus said, momentarily shocked. "I hope I'll be in Gryffindor, or James will never let me live it down." His grief was cut short as Professor Neuro reappeared in the room and the chatter died away.

"Hello first years," he began, smiling at them all. "Welcome to Hogwarts. Now the start of term banquet is about to begin, but before that, we have a little matter of your Sorting." Professor Neuro smiled at them gently again, looking down at all the faces of the first years.

"The Sorting is an important ceremony as it determines exactly which house you will be representing and staying with for your stay within Hogwarts. They will be as your family is; and you will have classes with them, stay in the same dormitory and eat with them as well. The four houses are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin. No doubt those of you from wizarding families will know all about this. While you are at Hogwarts, you will contribute to your house by earning house points, or by losing them through rule breaking. At the end of the year, the house with the most points will be awarded the House Cup." Professor Neuro took a breath before going on.

"The Sorting Ceremony will begin now. Please form a line, and follow me!" he opened the door and led the way to the Great Hall. Albus, Rose, Scorpius and the girl with violet eyes stuck together, one after the other in a line, and they followed the others and marched through the doors of the Great Hall.

A million candles. A million candles were floating serenely above four, long, wooden tables, with golden cutlery and tableware reflecting the flames. Students surrounded these tables; each one wearing red, blue, yellow or green badges and lining on their robes. Rose nudged Albus and gestured to the top of the hall, where all the teachers were sitting. One of them, with mustard yellow robes and black hair waved at the two of them. They waved back as Professor Neuro placed a four legged stool in front of the line of first years, and the patched and frayed Sorting Hat which once belonged to Godric Gryffindor.

A rip near the brim opened and out of it came a song; a song dictating the bravery of Godric Gryffindor, the wisdom of Rowena Ravenclaw, the patience of Helga Hufflepuff and the slyness of Salazar Slytherin. But near the end it spoke of other things.

"_Divided in houses you may be,_

_But don't forget these memories,_

_United once against the Dark Lord_

_Together we fought with Dumbledore._

_So put me on but don't forget,_

_These words of wisdom in your head,_

_When the time comes you'll realize_

_What are true friends and who really lies."_

The hall burst in applause, the first years joining in hesitantly. The hat bowed and then stood quite still. Albus bowed his head, acknowledging what his namesake had done for the school. Professor Neuro stepped forward, unrolling a parchment scroll.

"When I call your name, please step forward and put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," he told the first years in a quiet whisper.

"Amish, Tony!" A dark haired boy fell out of the line, put on the hat, which fell over his eyes, and sat down. The rip reappeared in the hat after a moment –

"SLYTHERIN!" shouted the hat.

The table on the far right cheered loudly, and Tony Amish took off the hat and went to sit at the Slytherin table.

"Cabot, Megan!"

"RAVENCLAW!" The table second from left cheered and clapped this time; Albus saw the ghost of Helena Ravenclaw seated there. He remembered what his father had told him. And so it went on. He watched his time come to be sorted, saw his brother James giving him the thumbs up from the Gryffindor table and he felt more confident.

"Honjo, Nana!" The girl with the violet eyes walked up to the stool, placed the hat on her head and the hat shouted -

"RAVENCLAW!" She took off the hat, smiled and trotted off to the Ravenclaw table, where Megan Cabot was sitting, and sat next to her. It was nearly their time, thought Albus. He would be sorted before Rose, he knew. And finally –

"Malfoy, Scorpius!"

_Malfoy?_! Albus watched his new found friend trudge down the line to the Sorting Hat. So, it was Scorpius Malfoy. And his father… _Is my father's-? _

"SLYTHERIN!"

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_**N.B. **__This was my first Harry Potter fic. __I hope you guys liked that :) Review please?_


	2. Chapter Two: Old Grudges Never Die

**OLD GRUDGES NEVER DIE**

_**N.B. **__Thanks a lot to __**DarkRoseDevon**__, __**Lovebites and Popcorn**__, __**teshara, sawiuk, **__**Sakura evil twin of Sango **__and __**I'm not that insane **__for reviewing! Lady V., you never know what might happen :) And sawiuk, Albus is just one big blur boy! Lol. You'll understand here._

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Albus stared as Scorpius took off the hat and proceeded to the Slytherin table, where the students were cheering loudly. _Malfoy_, he thought, remembering what his father had always said.

"_We were, well, enemies. Draco Malfoy was always out to get us remember?" Harry said to Ron._

"_Haha. But we got him a few good times too. But now they're finally subdued. Serves them right," Ron replied, muttering at the last part._

"_Ron!" Hermione interjected. She glanced at the Albus, Rose, Lily and Hugo, who were all seated in front of the fire, playing a complicated game of Gobstones. However, their faces were all turned to their father's conversation. Lily's gobstone rolled to a stop and squirted nasty smelling black liquid in Hugo's eye, who yelled and jumped up. Hermione rushed over to siphon it off with her wand while her husband rolled over with laughter at his son and the rest of them chuckled quietly._

"Potter, Albus!"

Professor Neuro repeated himself. Everybody had their eye on him, wondering why he wasn't moving. Rose nudged him with her foot and whispered a soft "_go!" _Albus stumbled forward, tripping slightly on his robes. He walked towards the hat, and noticed the students were whispering among themselves, some craning to look at him. Then the hat fell forward over his eyes, and he saw no more.

"Ahh… I thought I might be seeing you soon," a voice said right into his ear. Albus gripped the stool firmly with his hands.

"Now, no need to be scared! I remember sorting your father you know…" the hat reminisced. "He was difficult, yes… Extremely difficult. But now, you're not so different from him I see! Not Slytherin huh? Is that true?"

Albus shut his tighter. And he nodded.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat announced to the hall.

Albus took off the hat, holding it by its tip lightly and silently thanked it. Then he walked over quickly to the Gryffindor table, which was applauding loudly, led by his brother and his friends. He gave James a shaky smile, and seated himself to a fellow first year that had just been sorted. He held his hand out to Albus.

"Ian Finnigan," he said, smiling. "I know who you are already," he added with a chuckle. "Good one with the sorting!"

Albus laughed, "Thanks!" He turned back as Professor Neuro announced loudly, "Weasley, Rose!" He watched as Rose made the customary walk down the now disbanded line, and towards the hat, which she put on eagerly.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat finally declared, and Rose appeared and plunked herself in the space Albus had saved for her.

"That took a while," he said.

"Yeah, it wanted to put me in Ravenclaw," she replied, shaking out her napkin. "It happened to my mom too!"

"It's because you're so smart," Albus said, and Rose smiled.

"Whatever!"

When the last first year was sorted, Professor Neuro rolled up his scroll and took away the hat and the stool. The Headmistress stood up. She had a stern expression on her face and wore deep emerald green robes; her black hair drawn up into a bun.

"Welcome," said Minerva McGonagall, "to a new year at Hogwarts. I hope you've all had a fulfilling holiday, and you're all ready to begin a new year. Enjoy the feast!" Everybody applauded and Albus turned expectantly to the table, where food magically appeared before their eyes. He piled his plate high, as did Rose and Ian, with a bit of everything. It was delicious, and just as their parents had said.

"The house elves really are awesome!" Rose exclaimed. "Mom was right; we really need to appreciate them more. Maybe I should continue her SPEW club…?"

"House elves?" A girl asked, puzzled. She had dark blonde hair and deep blue eyes. "Who are they?"

"How can you not know what house elves are?" Albus demanded.

"Well, I'm Muggle-born," she laughed. Rose kicked Albus and rolled her eyes at his ignorance and tactlessness. _Honestly_, she thought to herself. She smiled at Ella nervously.

"Sorry, he's insensitive," she said to him. "I'm Rose Weasley and this is Albus Potter," she said as Albus choked on his roast potatoes. He grabbed his glass of pumpkin juice and drank it quickly to clear the temporary blockage.

"Well, I'm Ella Lucile. Nice to meet you!" she said, beaming at them all. Ian smiled and introduced himself. They talked about how good the food was and families. Rose explained to Ella about house elves, and even got her involved in some SPEW issues. The boys all talked Quidditch. As the food faded from their plates and puddings appeared, the talk turned to lessons.

"I heard Transfiguration was really hard!" Another boy, Sebastian Summers voiced worriedly.

"I'm more worried about learning how to fly! I'm terrified of heights."

Albus heard snatches of conversation as he turned to the teacher's table and looked at them. Professor Longbottom was contentedly finishing up his strawberry trifle, while talking to a short, round witch with blonde hair and wearing blue robes with yellow stars. After that was a thin man with a stern parting and a handlebar moustache. Hagrid was seated after him, waving at Albus as he realized he was watching. Albus waved back, and then turned to look right at the other side of the hall. He browsed the through the throng of students until he saw Scorpius' tell tale pale blonder hair. Scorpius was talking animatedly to his fellow Slytherins, and also eating. He looked up suddenly, and smiled when he saw Albus looking. Albus returned it and turned back to his pudding. His treacle tart shone invitingly, and he resumed talking and eating excitedly and contentedly with the others.

The prefects led them to their dormitories after the banquet, leading them down the old stone floors and corridors, hidden paths concealed by tapestries, past the moving paintings that yawned and snored. They dragged their feet and climbed what seemed to be all the hundred and forty two staircases at Hogwarts, until they arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady. She was wearing her pink silk dress as always, and asked a familiar question.

"Password?"

"_Domi adsum,_" Ryan the prefect said, and the portrait swung aside to reveal the Common Room. The first years hiked themselves through the portrait hole and emerged to see a comfortable and cosy looking room; sofas covered with red cushions, wooden tables and chairs, huge rugs that covered the stone floor. A fire crackled merrily at them as they entered, giving out a comfortable warmth that deepened their desire for beds and sleep. The girls were shown to their dormitories and the boys to theirs. The same four posters were there, with 5 beds. Albus saw one with his trunk at the end of it and made a beeline for it, as did Ian, whose bed happened to be beside his. Sebastian yawned a hasty "good night" and crashed as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Albus sunk down into his comfortable bed and smiled as he drifted off to sleep. _It really is awesome,_ he thought, before he fell into a deep sleep involving him flying on his broom to the highest tower of Hogwarts, waving to Scorpius who was at the window and laughing…

Sunlight streamed onto his face and Albus mumbled sleepily as he awoke. With a start he remembered where he was and got up to dress hurriedly for breakfast. He and Ian shook Sebastian awake and they headed down to the Great Hall together. It was full of students noisily eating breakfast and chattering with friends. The three of them headed to the Gryffindor table, and as they sat down, the post owls swooped in with a rustling of feathers and parchment; delivering parcels and letters alike from concerned parents and relatives. A snowy white owl, Hedwig the Second, flew in and landed in front of Albus' porridge bowl.

"That's a pretty owl," Ella said as she and Rose arrived at the table and helped themselves to fluffy eggs, crispy bacon and toast.

"Thanks, she's called Hedwig. Well, Hedwig the Second," Albus said, and he stroked Hedwig's head affectionately.

"Hedwig the Second?" Sebastian asked, swallowing his last bite of sausage. "What happened to the First?"

"Oh, she was my father's," Albus explained. "She, well, died." Albus started to take off the letter attached to Hedwig's leg while she dipped her beak into his pumpkin juice repeatedly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that," Ella said sympathetically.

"How did she die though?" Ian asked curiously.

"She got hit by a curse; that's what my dad said," Albus said. He gave Hedwig one last pat and she flew up to rest in the Owlery. He opened his letter, and found that it contained one for Rose and handed it to her, while he read his own.

_Dear Albus,_

_Hope you're having a good time there. James told us you've made it into Gryffindor! Congratulations; I told you it was nothing to worry about. Keep your chin up and pay attention in lessons, except History of Magic. Don't tell mom I said that. She sends her love, as does your sister. Be good._

_Dad._

Albus smiled as he read his letter and looked up to see Rose happily folding hers away as Professor McGonagall approached the table.

"New timetables!" she said, handing out sheets of parchment to everyone. She was the Headmistress, but Head of Gryffindor she remained nonetheless. Along the other tables, the other Heads of Houses were doing the same. Albus, Ian, Sebastian, Rose and Ella put their heads together and realized they all had Herbology with Professor Longbottom first. The finished up their breakfast and started across the lawn to the glass greenhouses, sparkling in the sun. The Hufflepuffs were already there, standing around in groups. A tall man with dark hair and a kind face emerged from the first greenhouse. Professor Longbottom motioned for them to gather round, dusting his hands off on earthy yellow robes.

"Good morning all! Welcome to your first Herbology lesson. I'm Professor Longbottom. Today you'll be working in Greenhouse One. Divide into groups of three to a pot," he instructed, holding the door open and they trooped in. The greenhouse was hot and crammed full of greenery. Albus saw a large purple flower swaying lazily in the heat. He felt himself start to sweat in his dark robes, and saw that Rose was fanning herself briskly too. They both settled around a large pot, which was full of brown earth and were joined by Ian. Sebastian and Ella took the next pot, and were joined by a pale girl from Hufflepuff. She tied her long brown hair back and introduced herself as Annabelle.

"Alright! Let's get started. Today, you'll all basically be planting these." Professor Longbottom held out a hand of bright pink seeds. "I think you'll find them most entertaining," he added, and shelled out a few to each group. They got started on their work. Albus, Rose and Ian all dug a reasonably large hole in the earth in their pot and dumped the seeds inside unceremoniously. Then they covered them back up and Rose watered them briefly.

"Done," she said, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. Ian sat down, but then exclaimed loudly as he looked at the pot.

"Look!"

A tiny green shoot had shot out of the dirt, twirling and looping around, with more leaves and branches coming out of the stem and making decorative swirls, and then with a final thrust, a bright pink flower had blossomed and opened, showering the air around them with golden sparkles. All around the greenhouse, other students' seed had also grown and the air was soon filled with golden sparkles. The scent of the flowers was wonderful and soon filled the greenhouse. Professor Longbottom instructed them to take care of these plants, and dismissed them.

"That was really cool!" Ella said. She held a petal from their plant and rubbed it against her cheek. "That was just really magic!" They headed into the Entrance Hall and glanced at their timetables for their next class. Potions lessons were in the dungeons, a welcome place to be after the hot early morning sun. The cool braziers cast shadows on the stone walls and it got cooler as they descended. Potions was with the Slytherins. They stood around outside the classroom already, and Albus was excited to see Scorpius among them. He was with a group of first year Slytherins, who stopped talking as the group of Gryffindors approached.

"Hey Scorpius!" Albus said.

"Hey Albus," Scorpius replied smiling. He waved at Rose and the rest of them too, acknowledging them with a nod of his head. He smiled shyly at Rose.

"Hey Malfoy," a Slytherin hissed softly, "Why are you talking to this lot?" Scorpius turned to his friend and then looked bemused.

"We met on the train; they're my friends," he replied. The Slytherins laughed.

"You're _friends?_"One of them said incredulously. They were all smirking, and Scorpius didn't like it. He didn't like it at all. "Yes, my _friends_," he said, stressing on the word.

"Gryffindors and Slytherins aren't friends," one of them with dark hair, who Albus recognized as Tony Amish said. "We'll _never_ be friends." Their conversation was cut short. The door to the class opened with a loud whine, and a tall woman with long dark curly hair walked out.

"Inside," she said softly. The class trailed in, one after the other, and as they sat down in groups of four, each house sticking to themselves, Scorpius and Albus caught each other's eyes. They were both wearing an identical grimace, mirrored on the other's face.

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_**N.B. **__Hey people, sorry that took so long to come up. I was having exams. Review please :) And enjoy._


	3. Chapter Three: Of Potions & Broomsticks

**OF POTIONS AND BROOMSTICKS**

_**N.B. **__Thanks a lot to those who reviewed: __**FanofEveryting100**__, __**sawiuk **__(I didn't want to break the legacy of Albus' parents being in Gryffindor :P), __**YinYangWhiteTiger**__ (I hope so too!), __**I'm not that insane**__, __**Lovebites and Popcorn**__ (you are unusually perceptive hehe, and History of Magic SUCKS), __**Sakura evil twin of Sango**__ and __**DarkRoseDevon**__. It means a lot that you guys reviewed! Wow, there are 7 of you listed here. Did I mention that my favourite number is 7?_

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The Potions classroom was cold, dark and bare. The professor, a tall dark woman with curly brown hair shut the door as the last of the students trailed in and took their places. Gryffindors with Gryffindors, Slytherins with Slytherins. Each to their own. Red and green standing out against each other. They were seated in groups of four; Rose, Albus, Ella and Sebastian on one, while Scorpius sat with his group of Slytherins, which included Tony Amish.

Rose noticed the odd tension that appeared when Tony had said those words.

"_Gryffindors and Slytherins aren't __**friends**__. We'll __**never**__ be friends."_

She could see both Albus and Scorpius thinking about his words. She remembered their first meeting on the train, when Albus had told Scorpius to sit down in their compartment, and their long, friendly and fun discussion of Quidditch. Rose knew Albus very well. They had been together since birth after all, so obviously she had known absolutely anything and everything there was to know about Albus. He was like her brother. They were _family_, and they could never be anything more. She was shocked out of her reverie however, when Albus noticed she wasn't paying attention to the teacher and nudged her in the ribs. Rose started, and then tuned in to what the teacher was saying.

"Good afternoon class. I'm Professor Luxor," she said, standing primly in front of the class. She seemed nice, but firm. Not always the best of combinations. Professor Luxor went to the blackboard and tapped it with her slim long wand. Words appeared, and Rose saw that they would be making a Hair Raising potion. Ingredients were listed under the title, along with instructions on stirring and when to add the ingredients.

"Today we shall be making a simple Hair Raising potion. It can be used, simply, to raise up all the hair on your head. Boys might find this potion particularly useful, especially when trying to achieve that spiky haired look. You have an hour an a half. Instructions are on the board. Please begin." Professor Luxor motioned for them to get started, and the class sprung into action, rummaging in bags for their potion kits and poking up fires under their cauldrons with sharp prods of their wands. Sebastian prodded his too violently and showers of fiery sparks darted everywhere. Professor Luxor rolled her eyes a little but left it.

Rose sprinkled a little spine of lionfish into her cauldron and stirred it slowly until the liquid turned from a murky green to a vivid electric blue. She looked up when she heard a frantic whisper of "help!" from Sebastian's direction and saw the problem immediately. Copious amounts of red steam was rising from Sebastian's cauldron, and he was sweating feverishly as he continued stirring quickly to stop the potion from boiling over as Professor Luxor was inspecting the Slytherin student's potions on their table. She was just bending over Scorpius' potion, and Scorpius, was nodding to what she was saying, bored, his eyes travelling around the classroom then focusing on the red steam snaking its way around. He caught Albus' eye, and then turned to Professor Luxor and started questioning her on potion ingredients while Rose frantically poured in some essence of belladonna, which neutralised the potion immediately and turned it to a murky green, the same green that was visible in Rose's potion just minutes before. Scorpius, seeing the little group returning to their seats and Sebastian stirring calmly and Rose dispersing the last of the red steam with her wand, stopped stalling with the Professor, and turned back to his potion.

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"Thanks." Scorpius looked up from his bag, into which he was stuffing his potions book. The class was over; they had filled glass phials with their mostly electric blue Hair Raising potions, and handed them up at the end to be graded to an amused Professor Luxor; the class had turned out better than she had expected. No explosions or fumes of noxious gas erupting from a badly made potion…

What Professor Luxor didn't know wouldn't hurt her. Bless.

"For what?" Scorpius replied, slinging his bad over a shoulder and straightening up. They were the same height, he and Albus, and they stood a foot apart, facing each other. Their classmates filed out, chattering noisily, off to have lunch in the Great Hall. Rose, Sebastian and Ella had filed out too, hovering by the door for a bit until Albus gave Rose A Look and she nodded and ushered the other two off to find a seat at the Gryffindor table. Albus motioned for Scorpius to walk with him, and they set off, quite behind everyone else and out of earshot.

"For helping out with Sebastian's potion. You saved us a lot of trouble, especially on the first day," Albus explained. Scorpius nodded.

"It's nothing. You guys seemed frantic, and I just wanted to ask questions," he replied nonchalantly. Albus couldn't suppress a smirk. Scorpius saw it then nudged him in the ribs.

"What?!"

"Never mind…" Albus said; hand over his mouth and doubling up with little sniggers. Scorpius chucked his quill at him. The reached the Great Hall, then stopped before entering. They looked at each other.

"Well… Bye I guess," Scorpius said, sounding odd. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"We'll see each other later," Albus said confidently, and Scorpius looked up and smiled.

"Definitely."

The two of them walked into the Great Hall and set off in opposite directions; one to the left, one to the right; one to a table of green, one to a table of red and in between the two, red and yellow. Divided.

* * *

After Transfiguration, in which only Rose managed to progress in their task of turning a matchstick into a needle, all of the first years had flying lessons. The ban of first years being allowed to bring their broomsticks had been lifted ever since the famous Harry Potter had been the youngest player for a house in a century. Albus had been itching to crawl back onto the back of his beloved _Lightning 7000_, a broom his parents had bought for him for his most recent birthday.

"_You'll make me proud, right?"_ _Harry said to his second son. He smiled at the look of ecstasy on Albus' face._

"_Yeah, for sure!" Albus exclaimed, still holding the broom up close to his face and inspecting the slim, highly polished oak handle, gleaming in the firelight…_

That was definitely one of Albus' favourite memories.

He clutched his broom tightly in his hand and marched onto the Quidditch pitch with the others. Annabelle joined them with a little group of Ravenclaws, and they stood about the pitch waiting for the rest of the first years to arrive. Madam Hooch was already there, handing out broomsticks to those who had none of their own. Rose held her father's old broom in her hand and nudged Albus as she saw Scorpius approach with some Slytherins. All of them had brooms, and Albus noted, they weren't cheap either.

"All right everyone, line up!" Madam Hooch barked. A silver whistle hung from a chain around her neck. Everyone scurried to stand in a line, and Albus found himself next to Scorpius. They grinned at each other in greeting, and Scorpius smiled at the rest of them as well. The other Slytherins made no such friendly gestures, and none of the houses bothered greeting them.

"First off, who can already fly here?" Madam Hooch asked. About a third of the class raised their hands, Scorpius, Albus, Rose, and Annabelle included. Scorpius was surprised when Rose raised her hand; it never occurred to him that she would know how to fly, or even hold a broom. His look of surprise betrayed him, and Rose stuck her tongue out cheekily at him and winked. Scorpius blushed.

"All right, the lot of you line up in front here. Let's see what you've got, since you're more 'experienced'. Take a lap around the pitch, no hurry now. This is not a race. You'll go on the sound of my whistle!" Madam Hooch ordered. Some spectators had entered the stadium to watch the first flying bunch of first years. Madam Hooch blew her whistle.

The line of twenty of them rose in the air, and sped off. Some fell behind, brooms unmatched with the better ones. Tony Amish accelerated and surpassed Scorpius and Albus, who were neck in neck. They glanced at each other and nodded. Then they sped up too, catching up to Amish in an instant, one on either side. Rose, flying slightly behind them, sighed at how foolish boys could be. Then she rose up higher into the air and speeded up, doing a barrel roll in mid air as she passed the three of them. Scorpius and Tony's mouths dropped open, but Albus just grinned and followed suit. The wind was in their hair, the pitch a blur. The spectators were cheering and so were their classmates, egging them on. Madam Hooch shook her head in amusement. They could fly, this bunch.

They landed, after one lap, Rose leading, and lightly descending off her broom with the three boys in tow just after her. Tony Amish's face was in a scowl. Sebastian, Ella and Ian cheered loudly.

"That was some flying, girl," Madam Hooch complimented, and Rose smiled prettily. The rest of the Gryffindors were giving her pats on the back. Tony scowled more.

"Suffice to say, none of you listened when I made it clear that _this was no race_. But nevertheless…" Madam Hooch trailed off as she saw those same cheering spectators on the pitch, walking towards them. As they got closer, the first years realised that they were seniors. Seniors, who were waaaay above them. And two of them were smiling broadly.

"Good flying Rose!" James exclaimed enthusiastically, ruffling her hair. She patted it back into place almost immediately and indignantly, looking up at James.

"What are you doing here?" Albus said, mouth open. James straightened and looked at him sternly.

"You, my brother, were beaten by a girl," he said seriously.

"Serious Potter, that was your kid brother?" One of the seniors looked from James to Albus. James nodded, pretending to be ashamed. Albus pulled a grimace.

"Well, since you're here…" Madam Hooch said, amused. "Might as well get started and tell them what you're here for." She turned to the first years.

"Each year, since the ban had been lifted, the Quidditch Captains of each house have started a ritual of coming down and observing those who had talent and maybe looking for those who could be enlisted into their respective house Quidditch team. It seems they have already made their choices," Madam Hooch concluded, looking at the seniors who nodded.

"We'll take them aside, Madam Hooch," said the Ravenclaw Captain, and she nodded to Annabelle and another Ravenclaw boy. The other Captains did likewise; pulling those with promise to one side. James approached the small group of Gryffindors, and smiled at Rose.

"You, are definitely coming with me," he said, and although Rose rolled her eyes at James, they could see her excitement as she bounded off. James continued perusing the rest of them.

"Albus," he said, and Albus joined Rose with a grin. They both laughed happily, and looked over at the Slytherin gang.

"He can fly well too," Rose murmured to Albus, and he nodded. They watched as the Slytherin Captain nodded at Scorpius to stand a little way away. Scorpius was grinning, and as he stood, he too was observing who else had been chosen from the other houses, and made an excited face at Rose and Albus, who were both posing madly in vanity.

"So. What do we have here," James said, returning with one other hopeful for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"You have me," said Ian, grinning at Rose and Albus. James laughed and smiled down at the three of them.

Yessiree, it would be a good season indeed.

* * *

_**N.B:**__ Hope that made up for all that time I took to write it )_


	4. Chapter 4: Just Peachy

**JUST PEACHY**

_**A/N:**__ I was pretty happy that I got feedback so fast :) Thanks to __**sawiuk**__ (that's a thought OO), __**TheNightimeSky **__(she's an awesome writer and I got stuck for names P), __**YinYangWhiteTiger **__(I'll try harder! Power!), __**Lupin4Tonks**__ (another Meg Cabot fan hehe, and yeah, Scorpius is a GOOD kid ), __**fortune kookie 91**__ (glad you like the change!), __**Sakura evil twin of Sango**__, __**irene0222 **__and __**loverofteddy**__! You guys are awesome :)_

* * *

To have this good season of Quidditch, James requested for twice-weekly trainings. Due to these twice weekly trainings, Albus and Rose were spotted doing their homework in the Common Room quite often and on this particular night after dinner, Rose decided to traipse down to the library with Ella for an optional extra credit assignment that Professor Neuro had set for them for Charms. They needed silence to concentrate, and that was difficult in the bustling and busy Common Room, in which James and his friends were setting off Weasley's Wizard Wheezes' newest fireworks. The sparks, bangs, explosions, lights and various firework animals were enough to wake the dead. So they set off, after Rose had gathered all the books she had borrowed from the library before to return to Madam Pince.

"Don't come back too late now girls," the Fat Lady said as they closed the portrait on the Common Room, and they nodded at her.

"So Rose," Ella said as they started off down the corridor, leaving the Fat Lady behind them, "How long have you known Albus?" Rose was concentrating on the pile of books in her arms that she had to return to the library and didn't her what Ella had said until she coughed politely.

"Wha-? Oh sorry Ella. Just, wait, here could you hold this?" Rose passed a few books to Ella who obediently held her arms open and relieved Rose of half the pile of books.

"Thanks a lot. Now, what were you saying?" Rose said, a little flustered from the weight of the books, and shaking the few long red strands that had escaped from her ponytail back from her face. Ella tucked a strand of her own long blonde hair behind her ear and tried again.

"Albus. I was asking how long you've known Albus," she repeated and Rose unwrinkled her forehead.

"Oh right! We've known each other for ages actually," Rose said casually. "We're actually cousins."

"You guys are cousins?!" Ella exclaimed, fascinated. Rose nodded again, long red ponytail bouncing up and down.

"Yeah, we are… Why so interested hmm?" she asked knowingly. She had a kind smile on her face. Ella blushed a little and her dark blonde hair fell forward to hide her pink cheeks. Rose leaned forward and saw her glowing cheeks.

"You like him!" she exclaimed, and Ella looked up quickly.

"You won't tell right?" Ella asked worriedly. Rose nodded, still smiling. Ella looked reassured. They both remained silent as they entered the library and Ella looked for a place to sit while Rose returned her stack of books. She opened her Charms book to the page she needed, then took out her half finished essay and more parchment, her quill and ink. She started working while waiting for Rose to come back.

After fifteen minutes, Ella began to wonder why Rose was taking so long; maybe Madam Pince was upset about her returning the books late and was giving her a lecture? _Impossible,_ Ella thought almost immediately, knowing Rose was too organized and responsible to have let something of that sort happen. She got back to her essay.

It's been twenty minutes now, and Ella is starting to become a little anxious. Where could she be? Maybe borrowing more books? Talking to Madam Pince? Ella resumes working.

After ten more minutes, bringing Rose's total absence up to half an hour, Ella gets up, leaves her bag, parchment, quill and books and wanders around the library. It is quite empty, due to the lateness of the hour and the fact that not many students frequented the library in their free time, due to having better things to do, and also the fact that Madam Pince ran the library, and was known for her fanatic love of her books, which meant that they had to be treated well, and she swooped around, breathing down the necks of those that touched her precious tomes.

Ella, keen to avoid Madam Pince, moves quietly and surely. She sees a little group of fifth years, studying quietly and she avoids going closer, worried that she'd disturb them and incur their wrath. Ella also avoids the Restricted Section, which is gated off and closed to all below sixth year. Rose wouldn't be there anyway. Ella proceeds along, drawing some glances from various students. Then she hears voices. Low, but surely there. Some quiet and suppressed laughter. Ella creeps along quietly, ears pricked to hear their conversation.

"No! Of course not," someone, _a girl!_, Ella realises, says. It's too soft to make out if it belonged to Rose. "I'd like if we had a lot in common," the voice continued. Ella hears another voice reply.

"Such as?" The Second Voice said, teasing, and the First Voice laughed softly. Ella realised it was Rose, then relieved, she stepped around the corner.

"Rose! Where ha-" Ella caught sight of the owner of the Second Voice.

"I'm sorry, Ella," Rose said, as they sat down in their chairs at their original table. "I should've told you I was somewhere else," Rose apologised humbly. Ella shook her head.

"It's nothing! You just saw him as you were returning you books, and he said hi right?" she replied, leaning forward. Rose nodded. When Ella had stepped around the corner, she had the shock of her life. Rose was sitting there indeed, but with Scorpius Malfoy. They both jumped up when they saw Ella, and said hurried goodbyes and barely looked each other in the eyes. Ella saw Rose, flustered, gathering her stuff quickly as Scorpius greeted Ella. She sussed the situation in a matter of seconds.

"I should be the one apologising in any case," Ella continued. "I interrupted your conversation."

"No, it was nothing, I had to finish up my essay anyway," Rose answered, head down, scratching away with her quill. Ella leant forward.

"Rose, do you like Scorpius?" she asked quietly, and Rose looked up quickly. Ella's eyes were sparkling, but she was also being sincere and kind, and Rose knew she meant well. They had grown to be quite close during the first week, and Rose knew she could trust her. She put down her quill.

"I'm… I'm not too sure yet," Rose said. Ella nodded.

"Why not? Scorpius is a nice guy," Ella replied and Rose nodded absently.

"I know he is. I guess, it's just that I don't know him too well. And what I know of him… Well, more strictly speaking, his family… Isn't too good," she answered, a little sadly. Ella nodded.

"I don't really… Get much of that stuff," she confessed to Rose, and Rose looked up surprised. Then she remembered.

"I'm sorry, I forget you're Muggle-born sometimes," Rose said, quickly adding, "Not that it matters. But you're not familiar with what happened nearly 20 years ago right?" Ella shook her head.

"I mean, I've _read_ about it. Sort of. Like, in the History of Magic textbook. 'In the early 20th Century, Lord Voldemort was vanquished by the Boy Who Lived at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.' The Boy Who Lived. That's Albus' dad isn't it?" she asked hesitantly. Rose nodded solemnly.

"Yeah, Uncle Harry is Albus' dad. And he killed Voldemort, right in the Entrance Hall. They told us about it," she told Ella, who was wide-eyed with wonder. "Mom and Dad and all of them. He was here. And his Death Eaters."

"Death Eaters… Was that what they called Voldemort's supporters?" asked Ella curiously.

"Yes, that's what they were called. And, well. Scorpius' father was one of them." Rose looked back down at her nearly completed essay and continued writing with her quill. Ella continued to stare off into space, now that Rose seemed to have no desire to continue the conversation. _Death Eaters_, she thought. And Rose's father was Scorpius' father's rival, along with Albus' dad…

It soon reached 8 o'clock, and the two of them, rolling up their dried and finished essays, packed the rest of their stuff in and left the library to head back to the Common Room. Rose and Ella walked along companionably, past the suits of armour and the animated portraits. As they reached the Seventh Floor, Ella stopped Rose before going in.

"Rose, you won't- You won't tell Albus about this right?" Ella asked, biting her lip anxiously. Rose smiled and shook her head.

"Don't worry. Your secret is safe with me," she reassured her friend, and Ella smiled.

"_Domi adsum_," they said to the Fat Lady, who nodded and replied, "Indeedy," before swinging aside to let them through the portrait hole. She swung closed behind them.

* * *

The next morning, Albus hung around the Common Room, waiting. Ian and Sebastian were waiting with him, checking the Notice Board.

"God, I wonder what's taking her so long," Albus said frustrated, and the two of them looked up at him.

"You're waiting for Rose, right?" Ian asked, and Albus nodded.

"Why don't you try going up to look for her?" Sebastian volunteered. Albus nodded then stopped.

"Funny. I have a feeling I shouldn't…" he said. Ian rolled his eyes.

"Come on, we haven't got all morning. Breakfast will be over soon," Ian said and nudged Albus over.

"All right, all right. I'm going, I'm going," and with that, he took the first few steps up towards the Girl's Dormitory. However, a loud, deafening klaxon wail echoed up through the stairs, and then they turned into a stone slide. Albus haphazardly waved his arms around like a windmill for a split second, trying to run up the slide, then slid helplessly down back to the Common Room with a _thud_ on the wooden floor.

"Damn! I _knew_ I forgot something," Albus groaned, then stopped immediately as two giggling girls slid down. Ian rolled his eyes and approached them, asking them about Rose while Sebastian helped Albus up.

"Rose? I think she went down to breakfast earlier," one of them said, and Ian thanked her.

"That's not possible," Albus said as they proceeded to hurry downstairs to catch what was left of breakfast. "James said he didn't see her."

"James? Your brother? When did you see him?" Sebastian asked, jogging to catch up to their brisk pace. His brown hair flopped into his eyes and he pushed it back. "What do you need to talk to Rose about anyway?"

"Err, I'll tell you guys later," he said as they reached the Entrance Hall. However, as they neared, they saw Peeves swooping around, cackling with delight. He spied the three young Gryffindor boys, and singled out Albus.

"Ah! Why look who it is! Romeo!" Peeves cried. Ian and Sebastian looked at each other, then at Albus who had a look of horror on his face.

"Oh my God. James wasn't lying," he muttered under his breath, panicky.

"What is he _talking_ about?" Sebastian asked Ian, and Ian shrugged and poked Albus in the back.

"Yeah, what's going on?"

Albus shook his head furtively, and scurried to hide behind them.

"Okay guys, now, walk into the Great Hall. Don't move away!" he cried, grabbing the back of their robes as Peeves flew above and laughed evilly. Albus groaned audibly.

"What is _up_, Potter?" Ian asked, irritated, but consented to walking in while hiding his friend.

"Faster!" Albus growled, and the three of them made their way conspicuously across the Hall to the Gryffindor table. Rose was there, talking to a droopy looking Ella in a low voice, glancing around for eavesdroppers. Then she caught sight of Albus and the other two and made hurried motions for them to sit somewhere else along the table. The three of them sat down quickly and sighed loudly, relieved. Then helped themselves to toast, bacon, sausages, eggs and pumpkin juice.

"So, what was that all about?" Sebastian asked, shoving in scrambled eggs. Albus took a huge swallow of his bacon, gulped down some pumpkin juice and sighed again.

"James came up from breakfast early to tell me when the next Quidditch practice was. He also told me that Peeves was shouting something about the young Potter being the next Romeo and asked me if I knew anything about it," Albus explained. Ian's mouth dropped open.

"Wait, _are_ you being the next Romeo?" he asked and Albus stared daggers at him. Then he drooped visibly.

"James said that Peeves was making fun of Ella this morning," Albus replied, and continued increasing his cholesterol level with more bacon. He jumped as Hedwig the Second landed in front of him, with a note in her beak.

"Albus!" Rose appeared out of nowhere, hissing his name, and the three boys jumped. "Pretend nothing has happened okay," she implored, and gave him A Look. A Look that said do-what-I-say-or-die and Albus knew very well that Rose meant it so he nodded.

"Come on Romeo," Ian chided as they finished off breakfast. "Let's get to Charms." They set off, Albus slitting open the note Hedwig had brought him.

_Dear Albus,_

_Hope you're free to come visit this evening; I've baked a cake. You can bring your friends with you and tell me how everything's going._

_Hagrid._

_How everything's going,_ Albus thought. _It's going peachy. Juuuust peachy._

* * *

_**A/N:**__ I hope that wasn't too abrupt O.O Hope you guys liked it!_


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